Online Game: I Have A 100% Drop Rate

Chapter 188: Chapter 188: Entering the Hellish Beach Realm, Nightmare Difficulty

Unlike zones, where difficulty changes mainly affected strength and numbers, [Realms] were different.

A higher difficulty could completely alter the environment, introduce new mechanics, spawn entirely different creatures, and even change the structure of the realm itself.

Which meant that the gap between [Hell] and [Nightmare] was massive.

“Well…” Leon said as a grin slowly spread across his face, “We don’t really have a choice, do we?”

The quest clearly stated that the [Volcano Crab King] only appeared in the highest difficulty.

So there was no point in hesitating. Without giving anyone time to react…

Fwoosh!

Leon selected [Nightmare].

And the moment he did—

BOOM!

The portal reacted instantly.

The calm beige color twisted violently as a deep crimson hue spread through it, the energy intensifying to the point where the entire room seemed to vibrate slightly.

The atmosphere changed in an instant.

Everyone in the room turned their heads at the same time, their eyes locking onto the portal.

“Holy hell… they’re actually choosing [Nightmare]?”

“Are they insane? I heard it can take days just to navigate that place…”

“Look at their ranks… two F-Rank and one C-Rank, they’re dead.”

Murmurs spread quickly. But then… Something else caught their attention.

Their eyes shifted toward Leon. And more specifically… His ID.

“CELESTIAL?!”

“HOLY SHIT!”

The reaction was instant.

“Let’s move,” Leon said with a grin, not bothering to waste another second as he stepped forward and jumped straight into the portal.

Celeste and Emilia followed right behind him without hesitation.

A few players instinctively took a step forward, tempted to follow.

After all, if it was really him… But then they looked back at the portal.

They stared at the crimson energy swirling within it, and the [Nightmare] difficulty.

“…Yeah, no. I’m not going in there.”

“If it was [Hell], maybe…”

“Let’s just wait and see what happens.”

And just like that, the idea died. No one followed.

Instead, they chose to stay behind, watching, waiting, curious to see whether the so-called [Celestial] could actually conquer something like this.

…

Meanwhile, inside the portal…

Leon felt his body being pulled apart and reassembled at the same time, the space around him twisting violently as he was transported into the [Hellish Beach].

The sensation lasted only a few seconds. But it was enough.

Fwoosh!

Leon landed. His feet sank slightly into warm sand as the sound of waves crashing echoed in the distance.

He slowly lifted his gaze. Behind him, a dense forest stretched outward, its trees dark and twisted.

And far ahead… A massive volcano towered over the entire landscape, smoke rising from its peak as faint red light pulsed from within.

’I guess that’s where the boss is,’ Leon thought with a small grin forming on his lips.

He turned around, already speaking.

“Emilia, Celeste, do you guys see this—”

But he suddenly stopped as he realized that he was the only one around.

Neither Celeste nor Emilia were close to him at this moment.

“Oh,” Leon let out quietly.

It seemed… They hadn’t been sent to the same spawn point.

Since [Realms] were much larger than [Zones], they didn’t function the same way when it came to entry points.

Instead of sending every player to a fixed location, they were designed with multiple spawn points scattered across the entire map.

Making exploration more unpredictable and forcing players to adapt rather than rely on coordination from the very start.

That also meant that even if a group entered together, or even if someone followed right behind another person, there was no guarantee they would appear anywhere close to each other.

In fact, more often than not, they wouldn’t.

’I guess I’ll have to find them myself,’ Leon thought calmly as he began to move forward, not showing any sign of concern despite the situation.

To him, this wasn’t really a problem.

Even though the name of the realm was [Hellish Beach], Leon quickly realized that the beach itself was only a small portion of the entire area, most likely serving as an outer layer or starting zone for players entering the realm.

The real challenge clearly lay deeper within.

The island itself stretched far beyond the sandy shore, and the massive forest ahead seemed to be the true beginning of the journey, acting as the main path players would have to cross before even getting close to the volcano.

To Leon, none of this really changed his approach.

Whether it took hours or days didn’t matter to him.

As long as he could complete the quest, that was enough.

Even if it meant spending multiple days inside this realm, grinding enemies, collecting drops, and slowly making his way forward, he was completely fine with it.

In fact, part of him even welcomed it.

After all, he still needed to level up, and more importantly, he needed items.

And this place… It was perfect for that.

Not to mention, he still had to wait for the cooldown of his [Life Vessel] title to reset, which meant that staying here for a while wasn’t a bad idea at all.

But just as he was about to step into the forest… Leon suddenly stopped.

His expression shifted slightly.

’Actually… I just thought of something.’

Searching for Celeste and Emilia blindly across an entire island wasn’t exactly efficient, especially considering how large this realm seemed to be.

And even if they all moved toward the volcano, there was no guarantee they would meet quickly.

And while that wasn’t a major issue… It was still annoying.

He had already received messages from both of them, likely asking about his location or checking if he was alright.

But instead of replying immediately, Leon decided to try something else.

Something that might make things much easier.

“World Map.”

The moment he said it, a familiar panel appeared before his eyes, expanding outward and displaying a large, detailed interface.

This was the first time he was using the [World Map] inside a [Realm] or [Zone], and he wasn’t entirely sure how it would behave.

But… If it worked the way he hoped… Then things would become much simpler.

And a second later, the map appeared. Leon’s eyes lit up slightly as he looked at it.

The entire [Hellish Beach] island was displayed before him, meaning that the [World Map] indeed worked on it!

Though not everything was visible: large portions of the map were covered in a grey fog, clearly indicating unexplored areas.

Which meant that the system only revealed locations that the player had either visited or had visual access to.

Still… That was more than enough. Because now, Leon could clearly see his own position.

A small marker representing him was placed right on the beach, exactly where he was standing.

And ahead of him was the forest.

But more importantly… At the center of the island, the volcano stood out clearly on the map, marked with a distinct symbol: a skull.

’I guess it’s showing me where the boss is too,’ Leon thought with a grin, clearly satisfied.

But that wasn’t even the best part. Because just a moment later, he noticed two small dots moving.

“They’re here,” Leon muttered under his breath.

Celeste and Emilia. Each of them was visible on the map.

But they weren’t close. Not even slightly.

They had been spawned on completely different sides of the island, far apart from each other, which only confirmed just how large this realm truly was.

Still, that didn’t matter anymore. Because now, Leon knew exactly where they were.

And more importantly… They knew where to go.

Without wasting any time, Leon opened his messages and quickly sent one to both of them.

[Celestial: I can see you on the “World Map”, just do whatever you want, I’ll find you eventually.]

The reply came almost instantly.

[Saintess: Alright ٩(◕‿◕)۶]

[UndyingPhoenix: I’ll be waiting for you!]

Leon smiled faintly as he closed the panel.

Everything was under control. There was no need to rush.

They could all move at their own pace, grow stronger, and eventually meet up somewhere along the way.

And with that… Leon finally stepped forward.

The sand beneath his feet shifted slightly as he moved, the sound of the waves slowly fading behind him as he approached the edge of the forest.

Leon’s grin slowly returned.

“Let’s see what this [Hellish Beach] is really about.”

And with that, he stepped into the forest.